Bulletin 11/10/11

These reports are from the previous four issues of the Daily Bulletin in Colfax. They are reprinted here for the benefit of Gazette readers who reside outside of Colfax. Some accounts have been updated.

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GRANNIES ON THE MOVE

Colfax Thrifty Grandmothers Shop is in the process of moving to a new location on the opposite side of Main Street. They have leased the former site of Deacon’s Medical Equipment from Roger Deacon and are now in the process of moving.

The Grandmothers Tuesday conducted the last day of business at the former site and plan to be closed Friday and Saturday to complete the move.

Six jail inmate trustees Monday helped move boxes of stored inventory on hand carts across Main Street to the new location.

Bonnie Smith, president of the club, said they are in the process of moving 300 boxes to the new store location.

The former Deacon’s site provides much larger floor space for the shop’s inventory. Width of the site is 30 feet compared to 16 feet in the present location.

The Grandmothers plan to use part of the new space to display Christmas ornaments and decorations for the holiday season.

“Thrifty Grandmothers Shop” sign boards were painted and installed by Allen McSweeney beneath the awning of the new location.

The Deacon’s Medical Equipment site was left vacant after the Deacons sold the business to Northern Medical Systems of Chewelah. They moved their store to the Sid’s Pharmacy which is located in the Pullman Care Community off Bishop Blvd. in Pullman.

Prior to Deacons, the site was the long-time location for Elk Drug Store.

Thrifty Grandmothers, which returns proceeds of their store operations to assist community projects and help individuals, has operated at its present site for about 10 years.

SCOOTER THEFT ARREST

Anthony Tolan, 33, Colfax, was arrested Sunday as a suspect in the theft of two Razor scooters and chargers from a residence on Thorn Street. Tolan was booked into the county jail. Chief Bill Hickman said Tolan became a suspect when he attempted to pawn the two scooters in Colfax.

TWO MORE CONVICTIONS IN HOOD CASES

Two more convictions and sentences for break-ins at the Larry Hood residence south of Pullman were logged Friday in superior court.

Lindsey M. Robinson, 19, Lewiston, was sentenced to 60 days in jail after admitting reduced charges of criminal trespass in a second 2010 hit on the residence. She was one of four suspects named in a May 7 break-in at the residence on Highway 195 south of Pullman. She was ordered to pay fines and fees totaling $4,200 with $2,500 restitution to Hood. The theft involved a Sharp TV set which officers later located at a pawn shop. In the May 7 case, the report said Hood discovered the break-in when he returned home early that day.

Courtney M. Dewey, Moscow, was sentenced to 30 days in jail on an amended charge of fourth degree assault on Hood April 22 when Hood was allegedly robbed in his driveway.

Dewey was ordered to pay fines and fees and $2,550 restitution to Hood for cash allegedly taken from the robbery.

Investigation reports said the two hits at the Hood residence came from suspects who apparently knew of Hood’s routine when making trips to the casino in the valley.

COLTON DRIVER UNHURT IN WRECK

Dylan J. Sparkman, 19, Colton, was unhurt Friday when he lost control of a 1977 Oldsmobile on Highway 195 about five miles south of Colfax. According to the Washington State Patrol report, Sparkman was driving southbound at 1:42 p.m. when the Oldsmobile went off the right side of the highway into a field and then into a drainage ditch.

GLENWOOD WATER LINE ON AGENDA

Upgrading the supply line from the city’s artesian wells at Glenwood to the booster pump station on N. Clay Street could be a city project in the future. Condition of the supply line has become a city concern in recent years.

City Supervisor Carl Thompson advised the city council Monday night that Erik Coats, Pullman consulting engineer, will attempt to locate a firm which can undertake a preliminary survey of the line to determine its condition. The less expensive survey would be done in advance of an actual engineering study.

Among alternatives would be replacing the line or possibly lining it. The city could also consider locating the line along the former UP right-of-way which is along the south side of the river.

Coats will also report on a project to remove more of the deposits from the bottom of the Colfax sewer lagoons. A buildup of deposits at the bottom of the lagoons reduces their effectiveness.

Thompson reported the city has all the permits in place for undertaking the job except for the permit to deposit the materials on the surface. In the prior project, which pumped out an estimated 25 percent of the deposits, the material was distributed on farmland.

FOOD BAGS OUT

Scouts in Colfax troops 550 and 595 Saturday distributed “Scouting for Food” bags at the doors of houses in Colfax. Approximately 1,000 bags were distributed.

Residents are asked to place food donations in the bags and place them near their front door. Collection is expected to begin about 9 a.m. Saturday.

CAR IN FIELD DUO SENTENCED

Two Lewiston residents who were found in a running car in a stubble field in the Steptoe area Sept. 7 were each sentenced to a year in jail with all but 30 days suspended. Both of the suspects pleaded guilty to reduced charges Friday morning in superior court.

Rebecca Phelps, 26, pleaded guilty to driving while under the influence and possession of under 40 grams of marijuana. David Wilson, 23, pleaded guilty to charges of possession of marijuana and solicitation to possess methamphetamine.

Senior Deputy Prosecutor Bill Druffel said the state opted to reduce the charges because both the suspects had come forward to resolve the cases in an early fashion. He also noted the young age of the suspects and the absence of previous drug convictions.

The two suspects were reported to be under the influence of methamphetamine at the time of the arrest. The officer’s arrest report alleged they said they pulled into the stubble field, which was located off McMeekin Road, because they believed they were being chased.

Judge David Frazier said he considered the crimes extremely serious because of the danger involved not only to other motorists who were driving along Highway 195 but to neighborhood farmers who could have sustained losses if the car in which they were riding ignited the stubble field and subsequently spread to unharvested fields.

Druffel said 86 grams of marijuana, a baggy containing methamphetamine and two syringes with liquid meth were confiscated from the car.

The judge ordered each defendant to undergo an evaluation for substance abuse and adhere to any recommended treatment plan. He noted the remaining 334 days of the sentences were hanging over their heads if he learned at a future review date that they had failed to follow the court order for evaluation and treatment.

Each was also placed on two years of supervision and ordered to pay $2,700 in fines and fees.

TRUCK HITS UTILITY POLE

Colfax Police were called to the scene of an accident on Tyler Street Nov. 3. A 1998 Freightliner truck with double trailers had damaged a utility pole on the street. Driver of the truck was Magdalleno Casillas, 55, Warden.

COURT OKAYS WSU WATER RULING

Judge David Frazier ruled Nov. 2 a 2004 move by WSU to consolidate its water rights fell within the law. The court ruling backed a decision by the state’s Pollution Control Hearing Board.

The court challenge on the WSU water rights consolidation was filed by Scott Cornelius of Pullman, Palouse Water Conservation Network and Sierra Club Palouse Group. They appealed the decision made by the state’s Pollution Control Hearing Board which heard the first round of the dispute against a decision by the state’s Department of Ecology.

In 2004 WSU moved to consolidate its ground water right for seven wells by asking the DOE to authorize a draw of any quantity from any well as long as the total remained under the total of the rights assigned to the individual wells. In 2006 the DOE approved the change as it applied to six of WSU‘s wells.

A decision on the court challenge was delayed until a state supreme court ruling was issued on a case involving interpretation of the state’s Municipal Water Law. After applying the state’s high court ruling to the WSU challenge, Judge Frazier said the appellants in the WSU challenge failed to prove application of the Municipal Water Law violated provisions in the constitution.

RIVER ROCK WORK NEARS FINISH

Deposit of rip-rap rock to stabilize the bank along the North Fork of the Palouse River has been completed. The rock was deposited to protect the river bank which sustained extensive erosion loss during this year’s sustained runoff.

The riverbank segment is across the North Palouse River Road from the entry to Redtail Ridge housing development. Property next to the riverbank is owned by Redtail.

Palouse Conservation District was the lead agency on the project. Supply estimates included 391 tons of rip-rap rock, 90 tons of basalt and 70 tons of rock for two “barbs” which were installed in the river. Basalt rock segments top the river barbs.

Contractor for the job was Steve Brandt Rock and Construction. Most of the material came from the Palouse Rock quarry in Colfax.

Colfax City Administrator Carl Thompson said grant funds from Fish & Wildlife assisted the project. The city’s share of the total costs, estimated in the $25,000 range, is expected to be between $2,000 and $3,000.

FACES BURGLARY, ASSAULT CHARGES

Rebecca Lynn Taylor, 34, Tekoa, has been summoned to appear in court Nov. 18 after formal charges of residential burglary and assault in the fourth degree were filed against her in court. A deputy’s report filed with the charges alleges Taylor entered an adjoining apartment on Alder Street in Tekoa and threatened the occupants. She is alleged to have choked the women residing in the apartment.

The report alleged Taylor entered the apartment because she wanted to stifle an argument which was underway between the two occupants about which film they wanted to watc.,

It alleged an inspection of the victim’s neck indicated she had been choked.